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Important information: The value of investments can go down as well as up so you may get back less than you invest. Investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. This is a third-party news feed and may not reflect Fidelity’s views.

Monday newspaper round-up: Barclays, British Land, Saudi Aramco

(Sharecast News) - Barclays could save itself more than £200m a year after deciding to take a break from paying into its staff pension scheme, despite the fund's assets plummeting by £10bn in 12 months. Barclays last month declared profits of £7bn for 2022, but its "contribution holiday" means the cost of the payments it would normally make towards former employee's retirement benefits will now have to be met by the pension scheme - prompting anger among some ex-staff. - Guardian A stack of factory-made modular labs, with a roof terrace and grass growing on top, has sprung up at Canada Water in south-east London and is due to open in late May. With growing demand for lab space, the company behind them, British Land, is unveiling plans for a large new research building on Monday, part of a nascent life sciences cluster south of the Thames. - Guardian

The chief executive of Wagamama has said chain restaurants will never be as ubiquitous as they were pre-pandemic, but insisted they will not disappear from Britain's high streets altogether. Andy Hornby, chief executive of The Restaurant Group, which owns the Japanese chain, told The Telegraph: "I don't think the [casual dining] industry will ever be quite as big as it was." - Telegraph

The world's biggest oil producer has reported annual profits of $161.1 billion after prices surged over the past year, eclipsing the record earnings made by its peers. Saudi Aramco also cited higher volumes sold and improved margins for refined products as it became the latest energy multinational to outline record earnings. - The Times

The former technology chief of Bulb has launched a new venture that aims to sign up energy suppliers to use the failed company's customer service platform. John Marshall is now chief executive of Zoa, which is controlled by the London-listed Sequoia Economic Infrastructure Income Fund, a secured creditor to Bulb that has taken control of its technology assets as part-repayment for a loan. - The Times

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Wednesday newspaper round-up: Aviva Investors, HSBC, car finance
(Sharecast News) - One of the UK's biggest pension funds has lost more than £350m on a series of "calamitous" investments in incinerator power plants that are expected to go bust in the coming days. The Guardian understands that Aviva Investors will put three incinerators into administration this week after pouring millions of pounds into what has been described as the country's "dirtiest form of power generation". - Guardian
Tuesday newspaper round-up: Starling Bank, Asos, Morrisons
(Sharecast News) - Staff have resigned at Starling Bank after its new chief executive demanded thousands of workers attend its offices more regularly, despite lacking enough space to host them. In his first major policy change since taking over from the UK digital bank's founder, Anne Boden, in March, Raman Bhatia has ordered all hybrid staff - many of whom were in the office only one or two days a week, or on an ad-hoc basis - to travel to work for a minimum of 10 days each month. - Guardian
Monday newspaper round-up: Energy bills, Black Friday, Lloyds Bank, Sephora
(Sharecast News) - Household energy bills across Great Britain are set to rise at the start of next year, analysts predict, putting more pressure on household finances. Officially, the price cap for January-March 2025 will be set on Friday morning by regulator Ofgem, limiting what energy providers can charge in England, Scotland and Wales. - Guardian
Sunday newspaper round-up: Kursk, AstraZeneca, BAE Systems
(Sharecast News) - America's President has authorised Ukraine to employ long-range ATACMS supplied by the US to strike targets inside Russia. More specifically, Kyiv will now be allowed to strike targets within the Kursk region, the New York Times reported. Speculation may increase that permission from Britain, the US and France to do the same with Storm Shadow missiles could follow. Joe Biden's decision is said to have been triggered by the appearance of North Korean troops in the Kursk region. - The Sunday Telegraph

Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

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